Yanina Mikhaylyuk

Artistic Director · Ballet/Character Dance Instructor

Miss Yanina Mikhaylyuk is a highly experienced and accredited ballet teacher. She began her training at the State Ballet School in Khabarovsk, Russia. After graduating, she became a member of the State Musical Theater. In 1993, Miss. Yanina attended Saint Petersburg University of Humanitarian Arts in Russia. In 1998, she graduated with honors as a “Ballet Master” specializing in choreography, ballet, character, and historical dance.

In 2003, Miss Yanina moved to Eastside with her family and began teaching at the Academy of Performing Arts in Redmond. Over the next five years, she worked with many ballet schools in the Eastside. Then, in the fall of 2009, she opened a new ballet school in Redmond Town Center. After 3 years of successful work, the ballet school under the direction of Yanina Mikhaylyuk moved to larger premises in East Business Park, Redmond. Miss Yanina has performed many classical and character roles in Russia and America in productions with different companies.

For the last ten years, she has performed on a big stage as a choreographer of ballets such as The Nutcracker, Coppelia, Cinderella, The Sleeping Beauty, Cats, and the last premiere of 2019 – ballet Don Quixote. As well as productions for kids: Chipollino (Чиполлино), Cat’s Housewarming (Кошкин Дом), and ballet Emelya (Емеля), based on Russian folk tales.

Her teachings were demonstrated by the accomplishments and awards her students brought home from numerous ballet competitions.

Polina Zakharenkova

Ballet/Character Dance Instructor

Polina Zakharenkova was born in Minsk, Republic of Belarus (former republic of the USSR.)

She graduated from the Belarus State Choreographic College, class of Vera Shvetsova (She was a student of the world-famous Vaganova) in 2003. Then she worked at the company of the National Academic Bolshoi Ballet Theatre of Belarus until the summer of 2019.

Polina has performed in all classical repertoires of the Bolshoi Ballet Theatre: Mazurka and Big Swans in Swan Lake, solo Spanish Dance in The Nutcracker, Indian Dance (Dance with Drum) and Grand Pas in La Bayadere, Gypsy Dance in Don Quixote, Batilda in Giselle, and many other roles in the world-famous ballets such as Spartacus, Sleeping Beauty, Romeo and Juliet, Love and Death.

Victoria Semko

Ballet/Character Dance Instructor

Victoria Semko started ballet classes at the age of 5.

She graduated from the professional choreography school in Krasnoyarsk, Russia, where she studied classical ballet and folk dance.

After graduating, Victoria has worked as a ballet dancer with the State Dance Ensemble “Far East” in Khabarovsk, Russia, for 15 years. Afterward, she lived with her family in China for the next few years. In 2014, she moved to Washington State, U.S.

Miss Victoria has taught ARCB students since spring 2016.

Andrea Freed

Ballet/Character Dance Instructor

Andrea Freed has been teaching at the Academy of Russian Classical Ballet for six years and has 9 years of total teaching experience. Her ballet career began when she was 4 years old. Over the past 6 years, under the guidance of her teacher Yanina Mikhaylyuk, Andrea danced all the main roles in productions of the Academy of Russian Classical Ballet. She enjoys sharing her love and passion for dance with her students. In her last two years of high school, she took part in the Running Start Program, attending Bellevue College to earn high school credit, and earned her Associate’s Degree in Arts and Sciences in 2014. She is currently working towards her Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) in dance at Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle, WA.

Sofya Shakhovets

Ballet/Stretching/Contemporary Instructor

Sofya Shakhovets has been dancing since the age of 4. She trained in both rhythmic gymnastics and ballet from a very young age, quickly falling in love with both. At the age of 14, she was accepted into the Kirov Academy of Ballet in Washington, D.C., where she trained under the supervision of Marianna Rozanova. In May of 2021, she graduated from the Day Program at the Indiana Ballet Conservatory. Upon graduation, she was accepted as a trainee to the Philadelphia Ballet. Throughout her time at the Philadelphia Ballet and School of Philadelphia Ballet, she performed in notable productions such as George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker, Angel Corella’s Swan Lake, and Samantha Dunster’s Snow White, to name a few. Throughout her training, she has also participated in numerous ballet competitions, receiving acclaim and scholarships that furthered her dance education. Alongside teaching at the Academy, Sofya continues to pursue ballet and further her education at the University of Washington.